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Robin Sloan

Author of Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

23 Works 10,617 Members 903 Reviews 8 Favorited
There is 1 open discussion about this author. See now.

About the Author

Robin Sloan was born and raised in Michigan, He attended Michigan State University where he majored in economics and co-founded a literary magazine called Oats. He published his first novel, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, in 2012. It was about a laid- off Silicon Valley tech worker who gets a show more job in an old bookstore and starts discovering one secret after another. Along with the store's owner, the old books lead to a 500 year old secret society. His other title's include: Ajax Penumbra and Sourdough: A Novel. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Includes the name: Robin Sloan

Series

Works by Robin Sloan

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2012 (53) 2013 (109) 2014 (62) 2015 (48) 21st century (39) adventure (45) audio (41) audiobook (96) baking (40) book club (56) books (252) books about books (286) bookstore (97) bookstores (219) California (82) codes (93) computers (100) contemporary (69) contemporary fiction (64) ebook (157) fantasy (358) favorites (42) fiction (1,247) food (52) goodreads (84) Google (202) Kindle (140) library (67) magical realism (96) mystery (383) novel (123) own (44) read (165) read in 2014 (48) San Francisco (331) science fiction (92) secret societies (242) technology (198) to-read (1,225) typography (64)

Common Knowledge

Birthdate
1979-12-19
Gender
male
Nationality
USA
Birthplace
Michigan, USA
Places of residence
San Francisco, California, USA
Education
Michigan State University
Occupations
writer
Short biography
Robin Sloan grew up in Michigan and now splits his time between San Francisco and the internet. You can learn more, and keep in touch, at robinsloan.com.

Members

Discussions

Found: Invisible bookstore…maybe? in Name that Book (November 2023)
Mr. Penumbra and the geeks in The Green Dragon (November 2015)
Mr. Penumbra's 24-hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan in Books in Books (February 2013)
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore in Book talk (October 2012)

Reviews

Delightful. Full of love and play and mysticism.

And microbes.
 
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capnfabs | 128 other reviews | Mar 9, 2024 |
In this novella, we get to see more of Mr. Penumbra's life and his path leading to where readers know him from the novel, and I just thought it was a fun read. It's nothing mind-blowing, but enjoyable to anyone who loved his character. There were a lot of parallels between his and Clay's story, which I thought was interesting, PLUS we get to see a younger Corvina! I truly loved the dynamic between him and Ajax, and the fan part of me is rabid for more of their adventures pre-"Mr. Penumbra's".
 
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deborahee | 33 other reviews | Feb 23, 2024 |
SEPT 2020, 2nd read
Honestly just as enjoyable the second time around. Always a new detail to notice or appreciate, and listening to this on audio is such a pleasant experience. I wish the Dragon Song Chronicles were real because I badly want to read them!

SEPT/OCT 2019, 1st read
This is book that has been hovering around by TBR for at least 5 years since a customer at a bookstore I was working at raved about it and told me it was unlike anything they had read. I just didn't get around to it until now; I needed something engaging to listen to on my college commute and this was sitting there so I figured I'd finally try it. And I get what that customer meant. "Mr. Penumbra" is truly a unique book, and at no point was this novel what I thought it was going to be.

Goodreads has a solid synopsis, but what it doesn't hint at are the wonderful, sometimes bizarre conversations that take place in the story. There is a lot of discourse around printed books and bookstores VS digital spaces and reading technology, but NOT in a "which is better?" way. This book could have been disastrous in that respect, painting those who read print books as "superior", but Sloan does such a beautiful job of highlight the constraints and affordances of each medium and putting them in conversation with one another. It made my little bibliophile heart swell seeing characters embrace reading as a whole, as an enjoyable, immersive artform that doesn't favor a certain platform or person. I really think this book is a celebration of reading, of curiosity for the sake of curiosity, of sharing knowledge, and the bonds formed between readers.

There were a few moments here and there that I think were a little out of place; for instance, I personally thought too much time was spent on the Google headquarters and describing people readers would never see again. Just from a plot perspective I would have like that trimmed down a bit. And I ALMOST didn't like the ending, but then I did? I think it's what I said before and it just wasn't what I was expecting, so it was a little jarring. But not in a bad way!

I just got a lot of delight out of this book. It's very transportive: it takes readers to new cities, pokes into crevices of thoughts that maybe you hadn't considered before, and paints a world that's both familiar and magical - and for me, that's a really special thing for a book to do. I can't wait to read more of Sloan's writing, and if we ever get a "Mr. Penumbra's" movie I'm gonna LOSE. MY. MIND.
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deborahee | 720 other reviews | Feb 23, 2024 |
Utterly delightful and deeply readable! I loved Lois's adventures with her sourdough starter and the Marrow Market; it's so weird at times but also somehow very relatable. This book also prompted me to look up various food processes, places, and people, and I ended up going down several Google rabbit holes of San Francisco farmers markets and cheese cultures and a bunch of chefs - there was so much in "Sourdough" to take in but it was never overwhelming, just a total literary feast! I think Lois (much like Clay in "Mr. Penumbra") was the perfect main character for this story and I'd love to see more of her. (Speaking of Clay, I got a dopey grin out of his New Bagel cameo)

Also, I now have the problem of having read both of Robin Sloan's novels, his short stories, the novella, and even his tap-to-read Fish app...and there's nothing left?? I can't WAIT to see what he comes up with next!
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deborahee | 128 other reviews | Feb 23, 2024 |

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Rodrigo Corral Cover designer
Abby Kagan Designer
Ari Fliakos Narrator
Nanna Solow Translator
Jeffrey L. Ward Cartographer

Statistics

Works
23
Members
10,617
Popularity
#2,240
Rating
3.8
Reviews
903
ISBNs
87
Languages
14
Favorited
8

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